In the parable of the weeds, Jesus tells of a man who planted a crop of good seeds but while everyone was sleeping, that man's enemy came into the night and planted weeds in his crop. Once the plants started to grow the servants noticed that there were weeds in among the wheat and they questioned the owner of the field, "How did this happen?"
The owner states simply that it was the work of his enemy. The servants then ask, "Well, should we go and pull out the weeds?" The man in his infinite wisdom says, "No, you might pull up some wheat as you are pulling up the weeds." He goes on to explain that when it is time for harvest he will have his harvesters separate the weeds from the wheat. The wheat will be brought into the man's storehouses and the weeds will be burned.
Later on that day Jesus' disciples asked Him to explain what that parable meant.
Jesus explained:
The sower of good seed = Son of Man (Jesus)
The field = the world
The good seeds = sons of the Kingdom (Children of God)
The weeds = sons of the Evil one
The enemy = the devil
The harvesters = Angels
Harvest time = end of the age
At the end of the age, Jesus will send out His angels and they will weed out , not only those who do evil, but also anything that causes sin. The angels will throw these thing into a fiery furnace, where there is wailing and gnashing of teeth. Yet those who are righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.
O.K. that was the short of it. Let's look at it a little closer:
This is what I found interesting. The servants saw the weeds. They knew that they did not belong there. They thought maybe it would be their job to pull out these weeds. Jesus (for that is who the sower is) said, "No!" He said that when the time was right He would take care of the weeds. To have His servants pull out the weeds now would mean risking the wheat also being pulled out.
What does that mean for us who serve Christ? Jesus is telling us not to pull out the weeds. Yes, we see them. Yes, we know they do not belong among the wheat. But we are not to pull them out because we, as servants, might make a mistake and accidentally pull out some wheat as well.
I am not much of a gardener, but I know that in my efforts to help my husband weed the flower garden, I have pulled out my fair share of innocent plants. Not only that but I have also mistakenly left some (pretty tall) weeds in among the flowers because, to me, they looked like a plant!
The same thing can happen in this world. We can see "weeds" in our communities and we might feel that it is our "duty" to pull them out by condemning them , or shunning them. But Jesus says not to do that. Not only did He TELL us not to do that but He also SHOWED us by eating and drinking with the sinners of His time.
Now does this mean we simply ignore those whom we call sinners? No, absolutely not! We Must Be Firm and Make it Clear That We....... love them. How many of those whom we would condemn, know our savior? Is it not our duty then to show them who He is by our love?
May I suggest that it is not our job to condemn those whom we feel may be lost.... sinners... even evil. Instead it is our job to pray for and love them. Perhaps someone might look like a weed to us yet in truth be one of God's most beautiful flowers.
Most of us can recognize sin when we are confronted with it (I know that I deal with it in my own heart and mind on a daily basis). We must HATE that sin however, we must LOVE the sinner.
As a servant of God I am relieved that it is not my responsibility to weed His garden. What freedom! How terrible if I were to pull out one of His precious plants by mistake!
There will be a time when Jesus will send out His angels and there will be a separation of weeds and flowers. That time is only known to God, and ultimately only God will know who all the weeds are and who all the flowers are.
There will be weeds who looked to us as flowers and flowers whom we thought of as weeds. So let us water both with the love of God until it is time for the harvest.
Great first entry! What you said is so true; it is not up to us to decide what (or who, in this case) constitutes a weed. Thank you, God, for that! Loving and praying for sinners-- or anyone, really-- is the best plan we can have as we seek to follow His plan.
ReplyDeleteWonderful post, I'm looking forward to reading more.
ReplyDeleteI guess my friend was right about you:) This is a great idea--what terrific way to use the blogosphere. What you say is true but not easy. Boy do we need each other not to become monolithic and self-righteous and take things into our own hands. One of my favorite examples of how to love well without compromise is Dietrich Bonhoeffer. He once said (about his own theology) "Only love keeps us from being rigid." I have it on my desk as a reminder.
ReplyDeletethanks for your gift to the community. I look forward to a connection with you!
yeah, you know, Im not going to pull my weeds either, too many and I'll have more time for fun! I feel better already!! ha! jk, I really like this, great idea, It is really neat that I read your email today, yesterday I was thinking, I should read through the NT and blog about what I learn, but I don't usually write things well, the way it sounds in my head is totally different than how it reads. Hmmm, that may be a whole new blog. Call me!!
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